‘Guilt’ Is The Summer Show of Your Dreams

Pretty Little Liars, Freeform’s (formerly ABC Family) first hit show, began what will likely be its final season earlier this week and the network is in desperate need of a mysterious new show to keep viewership up — they have found that in Guilt.

The murder mystery, which has a strong resemblance to the Amanda Knox case, premiered earlier this month and already has viewers hooked. The show follows the aftermath of the murder of Molly, an Irish student in London. Grace (Daisy Head), her American roommate, and Luc (Zachary Fall), Grace’s French boyfriend, are immediately suspects in the brutal stabbing.

It’s clear from the first few minutes of the pilot that their guilt is not a sure thing. Other suspects include a sleazy professor, Grace’s stepfather James (who is played by Anthony Head AKA Giles on Buffy), Molly’s seemingly violent brother, and, shockingly, members of an exclusive masked club where the women serve as high priced call girls. More shocking still is that a certain resident of the royal family seems to have a certain, uh, kink within the club and an intense obsession with Molly.

As part of dropping the “family” label — not that ABC Family was ever reallya family channel — the network is trying to make more sophisticated shows that get both the young adult and the new adult viewers. Authors like Colleen Hoover and Jamie McGuire have made “New Adult” a literary category, which follows characters in college and post-grad life, and shows like Guilt are going to make it a television one too.

This show is ridiculously bonkers and totally amazing. Guilt is a lot like The Royalsin its camp, soapy aspects, and the abundance of drugs and sex — pretty graphic sex for a former family channel. The party culture is reminiscent of Gossip Girl. It’s similar to Pretty Little Liars in its mystery, though Guilt has promised that viewers will know who the killer is after only ten episodes, not seven seasons. The bits of gore and the overarching feel of creepiness are akin to Scandal. If that doesn’t convince you, the different accents and the majestic background of London are good reasons to tune in too.

Simply put, there’s nothing quite like it on the air. It’s not a teen drama because all of its leads are in their twenties or older. It’s doesn’t have a supernatural aspect and is without a niche audience. It’s not a love story; we find out fairly quickly that Luc cheated on Grace with Molly after all. It’s not strictly a murder mystery because all of the characters are hiding something that has nothing to do with the murder itself.

This is certainly not the next great television drama. It’s overdramatized, a bit outside the realm of possibility, and generally a little crazy. But, if you’re looking for your summer guilty pleasure (pun intended), Guilt is the perfect pick.

Guilt airs Mondays at 8/7c on Freeform. Freeform has made the first two episodesavailable to stream for free on YouTube. You can watch episode one here and episode two here.